Will someone please vacuum the red carpet? The final acting race is here, and the guys left a mess during their catfights. Ahead of the final race, Timothée Chalamet and Wagner Moura both won Golden Globes, none of the best actor nominees snatched the prize at the British Academy Film Awards, and Michael B. Jordan just grasped the title at the Actor Awards last Sunday. 

So, let’s now turn our attention to the best actress race, where the nominees present themselves with more class. These women each delivered awe-inspiring performances in their respective films this past year.

Leading the pack is the magnificent Jessie Buckley, who brought the magnetic and mysterious Anne Hathaway, William Shakespeare’s wife, to life in Chloé Zhao’s “Hamnet.” I watched “Hamnet” in theaters twice, and wow — Buckley is simply incomparable. She wonderfully embodies a mother’s love, joy, pain, and sorrow. Plus, she has been on a winning streak: The Irish actress and singer swept the Critics Choice Awards, Golden Globes, BAFTAs, and Actor Awards for this role. There is almost no way she will not grasp gold for this performance of a lifetime at the Oscars. Well done, my lady.

Rose Byrne trails Buckley at second. The Australian actress delivered a masterful act as Linda in Mary Bronstein’s “If I Had Legs I’d Kick You,” a dramedy in which she displays great emotional complexity as a woman going through a crisis. Byrne, who won a Golden Globe for the role, has flaunted her artistic versatility across horror, comedy, drama, and even superhero extravaganzas. If the academy had more than one golden statue allocated for this category, I would happily kick her chances of winning further toward the front.

Coming in third is Kate Hudson for her role as singer and mother Claire Cartwright in the Neil Diamond musical drama “Song Sung Blue.” Similar to Buckley, Hudson conveys the complicated journey of love, motherhood, and grief through her incredibly cathartic performance as a woman wounded by life. Nominated once before in 2001 for her supporting role in “Almost Famous,” Hudson is a legacy actress renowned in the Hollywood community for her commendable career. Let’s see if she can figure out how to not lose something in under 10 days, and Hudson might just blow past first and second to the finish line.

Clipping Hudson’s heels at fourth is Renate Reinsve. Starring in Joachim Trier’s “Sentimental Value,” she was mesmerizing as Nora Borg, daughter of estranged father and director Gustav Borg. The Norwegian actress has gained some traction from how topical the film’s themes of family trauma and healing are, but she has not yet won any titles this season that would propel her past her peers. Still, there is a possibility that Reinsve could pull through and help the international film sweep the ceremony. 

Last but not least is the shot of espresso herself, Ms. Emma Stone, nominated for her markedly extraterrestrial performance as CEO Michelle Fuller in Yorgos Lanthimos’ “Bugonia.” The two-time best actress winner is the stuff of legend; this is her seventh Oscar nomination overall and her fifth nomination for acting. This year will be no “Easy A” for her, though. Despite the usual buzz that naturally accompanies her performances, academy voters most likely want to see someone new win on the big stage. But don’t worry, derby-goers — Stone will certainly beam herself back up later on even if she falls to last this year. 

Tune in to the Oscars on March 15 to see how it all plays out. I hear the hooves picking up in the dust, so make haste to those lovely LA highways.

Thanks for tuning in. We’ll see you back here, same time and place, next year. Watch the dust on your way to the Hills!